International Women’s Day

Mark the date: Friday 8th March 2019 is the International Women’s Day

As an all-female team here at Mantra, and with a huge commitment to empowering and supporting women and girls to be strong, confident individuals, we are keen supporters of International Women's Day.

The
date for ‘International Women’s Day’ comes from women gaining suffrage in Soviet Russia in 1917, March 8 then became a national holiday there. It was then
adopted by the United Nations in 1975 for an international day to recognise
women.

The first National Women’s
day started in 1909 in the United States by the American Socialist Party in New
York to honour garment workers who protested against working conditions.

History and Milestones

As a result of
an initiative by the Socialist International, International Women’s Day was
then marked at 19th March in 1911 in Austria, Denmark, Switzerland
and Germany. More than 1 million men and women attended rallies for the right
to vote and hold public office, rights to work, vocational training and to end
work discrimination.

In 1913-14 this
movement became a mechanism to protest World War 1 as part of a peace movement.
In Russia 1917,
women were granted the right to vote by the government following a strike for
‘Bread and Peace’.

1918 was the year British women over the age of 30
were allowed to vote by the Representation of people Act.

In 1928 the Conservative government gave women over
the age of 21 the right to vote, equal to men.

During
International Women’s year the United Nations started to celebrate the day on
the 8th of March which began in 1975.

In 1995, 189
governments signed a ‘Platform for Action’ which focused on 12 areas including:
politics, education, having an income and to live in a violence and
discrimination free society.

“Challenges and achievements in the implementation of the
Millennium Development Goals for women and girls” was launched in 2014 to
address gender equality.

Now, more than ever, there's a strong call-to-action to press forward and progress gender parity. The International Women's Day 2019 campaign theme is #BalanceforBetter. There is no doubt it will be a better world when it is a more gender-balanced world.

Celebrate the day with our 'Empower' charity necklace for Care International, or our female 'Strength' necklace. And available to order now - our new "Sisterhood" necklace, in support of Women for Women International.